Remember when e-mail scams only tried to sell you something you didn't want?
Lately a new type of e-mail scam has been circulating. This one promises you something you probably do want – money. Don't be fooled.
The scam, known as an "advanced fee fraud," was around long before e-mail. These days its most common form is an e-mail that says you've won a large sum of money, or that a person will pay you a large sum of money for little or no work on your part. It's also known as the Nigerian Letter or the 419 scam because the scammer often claims to be from Nigeria and 419 is the criminal code that this scam violates.
The stories behind the scams are different, but the result is the same. The victim parts with cash or sensitive personal information and ends up with nothing in return but a big headache.
Recently, Microsoft customers have become a target of this scam with false e-mails promising that you've won "The Microsoft Lottery."
We're sorry to say that you did not win the Microsoft Lottery, because there is no Microsoft Lottery.
These e-mails are intended to start a dialogue with people in order to convince them to hand over money or personal information or to click dangerous links on the Web.
This is another type of phishing scam, which we wrote about a few weeks ago. You can use the same general guidance to help protect yourself against these e-mail hoaxes.
· Don't respond to suspicious e-mails.
· Don't click links in suspicious e-mails.
· Delete suspicious e-mails and move on.
· If you feel like doing a good deed, report suspicious e-mails to the Anti-phishing Working Group.
For more information, see Spot and avoid advanced fee fraud scams and Recognize phishing scams and fraudulent e-mail.
I don't know about you, but I never travel without my laptop anymore.
Even when I'm on vacation for the holidays and have no intention of doing work, I bring my laptop so I can download digital pictures and play slideshows right away, pass time on the plane by watching DVDs, or play a little FreeCell while my relatives argue about politics.
Because I use my personal laptop to do some work for my job at Microsoft as well as for keeping track of my financial and other sensitive information, if it fell into the wrong hands there'd be a mess of trouble.
Before I take my laptop on vacation for the holidays, I always spend a few minutes encrypting my files to help keep them safe.
Here's how to encrypt a file or folder with Windows XP Professional or Windows Vista:
To encrypt a file or folder
1.
Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Windows Explorer.
2.
Right–click the file or folder that you want to encrypt, and then click Properties.
3.
On the General tab, click Advanced.
4.
Select the Encrypt contents to secure data check box.
Note: Files or folders that are compressed cannot also be encrypted. If you encrypt a compressed file or folder, that file or folder will be uncompressed.
If you have chosen to encrypt a single file, you can also choose to encrypt the folder that contains it. Select Encrypt the file and the parent folder in the Encryption Warning dialog window. All files created in the encrypted folder will now be automatically encrypted.
If you encrypt a folder instead of a single file, you can choose to encrypt all the contents of the folder as well.
For more tips to help you keep your portable data safe while you're on vacation this holiday season, see 3 ways to protect your laptop on the road.
The holidays: Spirits are high and so are the chances that someone will try to steal your personal information on the Internet.
Even if you've never heard the term "phishing," chances are that you've been a target of a phishing scam¾a fraudulent e-mail or Web site that tries to fool you into filling out forms that could be used to steal your account information.
You know those e-mail messages that seem to come from your bank? Or maybe from an online store, or some other financial institution? Complete with a familiar logo?
The messages that contain a link that appears to go to a legitimate Web site?
Sometimes they look so real, but they're not. Click on that link and it could cost you. A lot.
According to the Consumer Reports "State of the Net 2006" study, phishing attacks are as common today as they were last year, but with one disturbing difference: They've cost consumers five times as much money.
Phishing scams attempt to lure victims into visiting phony Web sites where criminals can collect passwords, or sensitive personal or financial information. Once criminals get what they're after, they may use the victim's account with the online store or bank, drain money from the victim's account, or open new accounts in the victim's name.
If you know anyone who's been a victim of ID theft, you know it's not pretty.
Here's an example of what a phishing e-mail might look like.
1. This is what the URL looks like in the e-mail.
2. This is where the URL goes.
Because phishing scams originate in your e-mail inbox, but can send you to fraudulent Web sites, it's important to use good practices and new filters in both your e-mail program and your Web browser.
Good practices to help prevent phishing scams
· Never click links in e-mail messages from businesses. If you think that the e-mail is legitimate, you should still enter the URL of the Web site directly into your Web browser.
· Always check the security certificate before you enter personal or financial information on a Web site.
· Don't enter personal or financial information into pop-up windows.
For further explanation and more tips, see How to handle suspicious e-mail.
Tools to help prevent phishing scams
· Use the latest version of your e-mail program. The newest versions of Microsoft Office Outlook, MSN Hotmail, and Windows Live Mail all contain phishing protections.
· Use the latest version of your Web browser. Internet Explorer 7 includes Phishing Filter, which you need to turn on and opt into when you install it. You can also get phishing protection with the Windows Live Toolbar with OneCare Advisor.
The folks who work on this product tell me that these tools have helped block over one million phishing sites for consumers, just since October.
For more information, see Phishing Filter: Help protect yourself from online scams.
Since when did the average preschooler know how to operate a mouse? Since now.
Kids are going online earlier and earlier. It’s never too soon for you to start protecting them online.
Windows Vista (available January 30, 2007) makes it easy to monitor and manage your kids' computer use.
You know as well as I do that the first step is talking to your kids about what they can and can't do online. But sometimes that's not enough. Without safety settings, it's easy for a child to accidentally stumble on an inappropriate Web site. And their idea about what's appropriate may be very different than yours. Zoo Tycoon or Halo 3? You decide.
Windows Vista Family Safety Settings help you protect your children from overly mature or inappropriate content by letting you choose which games they play. And you can protect them from making contact with predators by restricting the Web sites they visit. You can also get detailed reports about how much time your kids have spent online and exactly what they did there.
For more information on these and other security setting in the newest operating system from Microsoft, see Windows Vista: What makes it the most secure version of Windows yet.
Windows Vista will be broadly available as a stand-alone product or pre-installed on new computers on January 30, 2007. It will also be made available to some business customers later in the month of November 2006.
But you don't have to wait until Windows Vista is broadly available to start protecting your children online. Try the Windows Live OneCare Family Safety Beta or read the guidance in the Protect Your Family section of our Web site.